Chapter 00245: The State Treasury Borrowing for Survival
# The State Treasury Borrowing for Survival
Chapter 245
Novel: After the Immortals Disappeared
Chapter 245: The State Treasury Borrowing for Survival
Though Meng Shan needed rest, He Lingchuan faced no shortage of opponents at the Martial Arts Hall.
There were all sorts of participants, from the plump to the slender, the tall to the short, cunning and sly, every type imaginable.
Seeing him come every day, those itching for a fight would seek him out for sparring sessions.
He even encountered two soldiers from the Wind Brigade.
Luckily, these opponents didn’t strike with the same deadly intent as Meng Shan, so whether He Lingchuan won or lost, he could face six or seven opponents in a single dreamscape.
His strength, skills, and agility increased rapidly through these real combat experiences.
Another beneficiary of this was the thin man.
Ever since He Lingchuan joined the Martial Arts Hall, his income had soared.
It was said that after just a few days, he was almost able to save enough for his nephew’s school fees.
He had made a killing.
...
The sun was high in the sky.
He Chunhua was passing by his home, planning to go back to fetch something.
As soon as he entered the side hall, he saw his wife and eldest son sitting at the table enjoying some snacks.
With a bite of pastry and a sip of tea, they were in cheerful conversation.
When did their relationship become this harmonious?
Ying, his wife, spotted him and stood up with delight, saying, “Ah, you’re back!”
“I came to fetch a couple of documents. I left them in the study last night.” He Chunhua glanced at the table, where there were a variety of cute pastries, “What are these?”
“Lotus seed pastries, mint cakes, and this crispy salted biscuit is the best.” Ying was in good spirits, “These are all signature dishes your son brought back from our restaurant.”
He Lingchuan handed a crispy salted biscuit to his father, “Otherwise, why would it be called ‘He Su Tower’?”
He Chunhua swallowed one casually, “Hmm, tastes good.” He looked at his son, trying to assess if he was sitting properly, and couldn’t help but say, “Aren’t you busy today?” Both he and He Yue were so busy they felt like their heels were hitting their heads.
In the past, He Lingchuan would have been scolded by Ying for being so lazy, but now she just smiled as she sat beside him.
“Ah, I’m waiting for someone.”
He Chunhua didn’t bother to ask who he was waiting for; his son had been surrounded by people recently, coming and going all the time.
“Did you not take care of what I told you the other day?” he reminded his son, “The clerk reminded me again today; the steward of the Xinxiang village is named Zhou and has been waiting for your esteemed presence.”
“I will go.”
He Chunhua was not so easily put off, “When?”
If not for all his subordinates being extremely busy, unable to spare a single person, he wouldn’t be making his son do this work.
“Dad, the trouble caused by your officials, they can’t resolve it themselves, and now they want me to step in.” He Lingchuan said lazily, “Don’t I need to prepare beforehand?”
“Control the situation and do not let it escalate,” He Chunhua urged, “The soldiers from Xinxiang are the most capable around Dunyu; there are many meritorious families in the village. We are conscripting soldiers, so we cannot afford to get into a standoff with them.”
He Lingchuan furrowed his brows, “If that’s the case, couldn't we temporarily set the disputes aside and discuss them after the battle?”
“This battle cannot be finished in a short time.”
He Chunhua’s words caused Ying to let out a soft sigh.
Indeed, the distance from peace was still a long way away for Xiazhou.
“Spring is coming soon. If the ownership of the fields remains uncertain, it will be even harder to deal with after crops are planted.” He Chunhua asserted, “Xinxiang is not an isolated case; others will be watching how we handle it.”
He Lingchuan sipped his tea, “Understood, I will handle it as quickly as possible.”
Ying then asked, “I heard that before we arrived, the treasury was so impoverished it couldn’t find two strings of copper coins. How has it recently managed to ship so much food and military supplies to the front lines?”
She admired her husband; taking over a dilapidated state treasury and managing it so impressively was no simple feat.
He Chunhua smiled lightly, “Thanks to the various nobles from nearby towns.”
He Lingchuan responded on his behalf, “Just a few days ago, at the height of the rumors, even the four great families were wavering, thinking that the army from Xunzhou would break through and soon reach Dunyu. Father must have taken that opportunity to do something.”
In truth, Ding Zuodong had already informed him of the unusual matters within the city.
“At that time, the sound was so tense. I persuaded these affluent gentry, saying we are all on the same rope. If Xiazhou runs out of supplies, the year-end gifts will certainly be a slaughter for them, so they must not harbor any luck.” He Chunhua smiled slightly, “They recognized the reason and willingly lent money to supply food to the state treasury to counter the enemies.”
The emphasis on the word “supply” was heavy.
Though he spoke casually, Ying knew well that her husband had been working early and late, becoming thinner from the strain.
These matters were certainly not easy to handle, with countless disputes, finger-pointing, procrastination, and competition in between.
He Lingchuan was puzzled, “What does ‘supply’ mean?”
“Do you remember the bad debts accumulated in the state treasury before I took office?”
“It was mainly the four great families who, when exchanging grains at the treasury, left the accounts empty, I remember.”
“I had Yue’er go through the accounts roughly; then I asked these gentry to send grain in to fill the accounts.” He Chunhua explained, “The accounts have a huge deficit, difficult to balance at once, but the grain sent can be used for now.”
He Lingchuan slapped the table, “Father, you’re truly impressive, being able to make them regurgitate what they’ve eaten.”
That analogy was quite poor, and the expressions of He Chunhua and his wife turned disdainful.
“Why don’t they move away?”
“Without the official seals on the account books, commoners moving privately would count as fleeing, which is a serious crime.” Household registration management is, in principle, very strict; commoners need proof from their original household to relocate.
However, in the current Yi Nation, in some areas, the registration management was chaotic, and they were not being enforced tightly on the permanent residents.
Big families like the Zhan family had already obtained official seals from the state treasury before He Chunhua was appointed, allowing them to migrate elsewhere.
Other commoners fleeing could not possibly have such seals; they were like the tail end of the Zhan family’s line, hoping for the Zhan family to show kindness and take them in at the new destination.
“Moreover, their foundation lies here; moving would injure roots and bones. They cannot leave unless absolutely necessary.” He Chunhua said, “You see, the Zhan family left too early or went the wrong direction; after operating their business for thirty to forty years, they can only sell it off cheaply. This heavy hit to their vitality means that if they do not have opportunities in the next decade, the Zhan family will struggle to recover.”
Speaking of this, He Lingchuan felt quite satisfied.
Through Ding Zuodong’s arrangements, he had also reaped some benefits from the Zhan family’s loss.
And what he benefited from was just a small part; the biggest profit should belong to the state treasury!
Indeed, He Chunhua had used the treasury’s funds, which he had borrowed from various nobles, to personally sweep up purchases at extremely low prices during the panic of the city when the Zhan family retreated in haste!
These immediately transformed from private property to state or treasury assets.
With the Zhan family’s decline, others benefited somewhat.
He Lingchuan laughed, “So the state treasury has also issued many IOUs?”
“Indeed, what can be done?” He Chunhua scratched his head, somewhat embarrassed, “It’s not easy; I finally managed to have the Li family waive a debt of one hundred fifty thousand taels of silver, and the Shu family also waived thirty thousand taels. Others will learn from this. Yet, after one turn, we borrowed even more.”
For many years, Xiazhou has been in a state of spending beyond its income, borrowing money for survival, having borrowed from both the nobles of Dunyu and issued immediately, accumulating amounts exceeding nine hundred thousand taels.
To put it simply, the four great families are all his debtors!
If not for the disaster of war looming and if he could still hold the Li family, it would have been very hard for him to extract money from these miserly people.
Alas, it’s just borrowing new debts to pay off old ones.
He Lingchuan understood him well, knowing that if he said “more,” the borrowed amounts must be astounding.
But since He Chunhua did not mention specific figures, he did not dare to inquire further.
“Father, you disbanded their private troops, and they still dare to lend money; they must be quite generous.”
After the Li family sent troops to beat up the Zhan family, He Chunhua took the opportunity to issue an order, strictly prohibiting private armed forces.
Those who already had troops were to disband them on the spot, with each family allowed to hire no more than one hundred bodyguards; those who disobeyed would face severe punishment.
As one of the four great families, the Zhan family was also beaten to the ground by the Li family’s soldiers.
If this bad trend wasn’t stopped in time, then in the future Dunyu would be in constant fear, and with the clouds of war closing in, the culture of raising private troops would only grow stronger.
With the young and middle-aged being swept away by the nobility, who would enlist to fight?
Clearly, this went against He Chunhua’s goals.
“The Li family is very cooperative.” He Chunhua said lightly, “With this example, the other families will not be as stubborn.”
He Lingchuan couldn’t help but laugh, “That old man Li Zhao sure chose a great time to die.”
If Li Zhao had lived, he would have undoubtedly been the most formidable obstacle in front of He Chunhua.
Without Li Zhao, the Li family appeared as soft as a sponge to He Chunhua and could not withstand his maneuvering.
Ying pointed a finger at his forehead, “You, boy.”
He Chunhua’s brief respite didn’t last long.
Just as he sat down to drink his second cup of tea and eat his second pastry, someone from the state treasury came to hurry him:
“Director, a master from the Chuan Yun Pavilion has come to seek an audience at the state treasury.”
“Chuan Yun Pavilion?” He Chunhua was momentarily taken aback, dropping his pastry and standing up, “I have matters to attend to, I will return home for dinner tonight.”
Ying agreed with a smile and sent her husband out.
He Lingchuan scratched his head, thinking the name “Chuan Yun Pavilion” sounded very familiar.
Upon closer thought, it seemed to be the name of a certain Daoist sect that had quite a bit of influence in Xiazhou.
At that time, He Yue even suggested that he join the Chuan Yun Pavilion, but was ultimately thwarted by his father's evasive tactics.
Since it was a prominent local sect, He Chunhua, as the newly appointed director, could not avoid interacting with them; future dealings would surely be unavoidable.
At this moment, the steward, Old Mo, reported that Ding Zuodong had come through the back door.
This person had been frequently coming in and out of the He residence lately, and everyone had grown accustomed to it.
As soon as he arrived, He Lingchuan pulled them aside to close the door.
Ying was shaking her head, seeing them shut the door every day, wondering what they were mumbling about; they looked just like father and son.
However, half an hour later, unexpectedly, someone from the state treasury came again, hurriedly relaying:
“Director, Young Master He must go to Xinxiang immediately on official business, right away! It must be finished before sunset, without delay!”
The message was conveyed without missing a single word.
He Lingchuan was stunned, “What happened?”
“I don’t know.”
He Lingchuan was not so easily deceived, “What was the situation like at the time?”
“Sir was just having a pleasant conversation with Elder Liang from Chuan Yun Pavilion. In the middle, he went out to change clothes and sent me on horseback to deliver this message. Sir even mentioned that he would host a grand luncheon for Elder Liang to gain you a bit more time.”
(End of Chapter)